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The Federal Capital Territory Administration seems to have been grounded in the areas of capital projects, statutory activities and allocations of the administration seems to be threatened as a result of the non release of the 2018 budget.

there are also subtle Indications that the non release of 2018 budget might also affect the November 2018 staff salaries of its workforce this is due to the fact that the 2017 appropriation has been exhausted.

This indications were contained in a press statement issued by a civil society organisation under the aegis of Good Governance Initiative, revealing that the FCT Administration has exhausted its 2017 statutory budget.

The coordinator of the group, Comrade Olumide Olademije, also stated in the statement that ongoing capital projects are in a standstill owing to non release of the 2018 budget.

In his words, “It is shocking that in the month of November, we are still talking about the release of 2018 budget, and everybody is silent about it. As we speak, nobody can tell you categorically the state of FCT budget. Our investigation shows that activities in the administration are grounded and salaries for civil servants in the month of November is in limbo.

“This goes to show that civil servants may also have a bleak Christmas if urgent steps are not taken to address this unwarranted situation. We have moved round the territory, and discovered that previous ongoing capital projects are in a flat mode. Nothing seems to be working due to non release of budget. Either we like it or not, performance in governance is tied to provision and release of budget.”

Olademije, who used the medium to canvassed for the speedy passage of the 2018 budget and other legislative bills that will enhance the service delivery of the administration by The National Assembly who in this case carries out the legislative functions for the Federal Capital Territory Administration stressed that budget performance of the administration has recorded below average since 1999.

Olademeji however, warned that his group will mobilize other civil society organisations to enforce the immediate release of the budget if nothing is done before the end of November.

Late passage of appropriation Bills into law in the case of the federal capital Territory Administration has careful but steadily becoming a normal practice.

. Cambridge University: George Business School (Advanced Leadership Program)

PREVIOUS POSITIONS

· Governor, Anambra State of Nigeria (2006-2014)

· Honorary Special Adviser to the President on Finance (till May, 2015)

· Member, Presidential Economic Management Team (till May, 2015)

· Vice-Chairman, Nigeria Governors’ Forum (2008-2014)

· Chairman, South-East Governors’ Forum (2006-2014)

. Former Chairman: Board of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

· Former Chairman: Fidelity Bank Plc.

· Former Chairman: Guardian Express Mortgage Bank, Ltd.

· Former Chairman: Future Views Securities, Ltd.

· Former Chairman: Paymaster Nigeria Plc.

· Former Chairman: Next International (Nigeria) Ltd

· Former Director: Guardian Express Bank Plc.

· Former Director: Chams Nigeria Plc.

· Former Director: Emerging Capital Ltd

· Former Director: Card Centre Plc

MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS/ORGANIZATIONS

· Member, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG)

· Member, Nigerian Chartered Institute of Bankers

· Member, British Institute of Directors (IOD)

MEMBERSHIP OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEES

In my capacity as the Governor of Anambra State, I served as a member of:

*Federal Government Committee on Minimum Wage

*Federal Government Committee on Negotiation with Labour on Subsidy

*Federal Government Committee on Mass Transit

*Federal Government Committee on Natural Resource

*National Economic Council Committee on Power Sector Reform

*National Economic Council Committee on Sharing of MDGs Funds

*National Economic Council Committee on Accurate Data on Nigeria’s Oil Import and Export

*Agricultural Transformation Implementation Council

*Sub-Committee on Needs Analysis of Public Universities in Nigeria

*National Economic Council Review Committee on the Power Sector

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

2015: Golden Jubilee Award from Catholic Diocese of Onitsha for outstanding contribution to quality healthcare delivery in St. Charles Borromeo Hospital in particular and Anambra State in general, on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee celebration of the hospital.

*2014: Nigerian Library Association Golden Merit Award for remarkable improvement of libraries in Anambra State, exemplified by our Government’s construction of the Kenneth Dike Digital State Library, remarkable upgrade of the Onitsha Divisional Library, and provision of library facilities in secondary schools across the State.

In a bid to promote togetherness and national integration, the special assistance to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Visual Communication Miss Novo Isioro in collaboration with other like minds has put together a photo and visual Arts exhibition tagged ANISZA to mark Nigeria’s 58th Independence Anniversary come October 1st in Abuja.

Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja to herald the launch of the project come October 1st, the coordinator of the project Miss Novo Isioro said the aim of the mobile Arts Exhibition was the promotion of unity among Nigerians especially young citizens using visuals arts as a tool.

ANISZA an acronym coined by combining words from Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba, depicting unity, is a Nigerian idea that is set to address the needless agitations that Nigerians are faced with, fanning the embers of disunity.

In her words “we have seen contestations among adherents of the various religious and ethnic groups in the country. There have been tensions that have been generated because of our differences. But I think that this diversity should be celebrated and not be a problem.

“So I just thought about this tendency towards disunity, and as a visual artist, I understand how image tells the story more than words. So, I thought that we should use pictures to tell the stories of strength in diversity.

“The idea is to use pictures to speak to the people to stop the agitations, the drama, the hate speeches, division and instead work together. This is practically focused on young people. I realized that most people especially the young ones really don’t understand our history.”

Speaking on the sustainability of the initiative, Isioro, said “We are using a mobile gallery so we can take it to the 36 states of the federation with focus on schools.”

She added that “We are collaborating with state governments and federal ministries to take this gallery to schools in their domain to get as many children as possible to benefit from the project. But we are also having an online platform that we will use to keep the message alive.

“But for October 1, we are inviting students from schools across the country. We plan to host the students for three days during which there will be a symposium, an exhibition and a mini-tour.”

Other partners in the project said the initiative would bring to live forgotten values and the essence of maintaining Nigeria’s heritage for the purpose of promoting unity.

One of the partners Mr Melah Bonaventure who is the Managing Editor of Daily Times Nigeria, said the issue of unity in Nigeria is important and as such “Nigeria needs patriotic citizens more than oil because the problem of unity has to come first of all from lack of patriotism.

He said: “No country can achieve greatness when the citizens don’t love the country. “It is only when we bring our various unique differences to the centre that we can form a greater and prosperous nation.”

On his part, Dr Mayo Adediran, a former top FG official on Museums & Archives now a Consultant, said preserving Nigeria’s cultural heritage was as important as promoting the country’s economic potentials.

According to him, “sometimes human memory may fail us but when you put concentrated information in a monument, it becomes a historical fact that jolts our memory each time we walk past.”

For Architect Sarumi Sadiq, one of the technical managers in the group “what we are doing is supposed to excite,” and spark all the senses of unity to see that Nigeria indeed becomes a great nation.”

The Project Manager Murphy Imamezi noted that love is what drives true patriotism and a sense of unity among any people, adding “this is what is at the center of ANISZA.”

President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to declare the exhibition open next Monday October 1.

As the rumour of the rancour between Governor Akinwunmi Ambode and his estranged Godfather Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu the National Leader of the All Progressive Congress thickens, one begins to imagine if the contentious issue that is threatening the second term ambition of the Epe Born politician is actually due to the lack of performance and development of Lagos State or some personal issues that are not open to Lagosians.

It is a fact that In politics one cannot shy away from issues of “God-fatherism”, it is a phenomenon that has come to stay especially in the Nigeria kind of politics where the godfather decides what happens in the political scene.

Overtime issues of overbearing godfathers have led to situations where a performing governor is abruptly removed just because of perceived fears in some quarters. This has led to face-offs between political godfathers and their godson.

Chris Ngige verus Chris Uba, Lamidi Adedibu and Rasheed Ladoja both in Anambra and oyo states respectively left a sour taste in the mouth of students of politics.

Akinwunmi Ambode has been adjudge and named a performing Governor by Lagosians since his assumption of office in 2015. Building on the successes recorded by his predecessor Babatunde Fashola in infrastructural development made him a darling of the people.

Below are some of the giant achievements of the unassuming administrator called Akinwunmi Ambode

35 Achievements of Governor Ambode in Lagos for the past 3 years!

1. Backlog payment of N 11 Billion as arrears to retirees of Lagos State Government.

2. Built the Safety Arena, in Oshodi, to bring all the Departments and Agencies responsible for safety and emergency management under one roof.

3. Completed or close to completing more than 300 Local Government road projects, since 2015.

5. Launched Amnesty period for land/property owners to obtain/regularise building permits. Between March 1 and August 31, 2018, Lagos State Government will not charge any penalty for those who have erected structures on their land without a building permit. This window offers a 6-month grace period for landowners to obtain their building permit.

10. Launched the Bus Reform Initiative, to bequeath a world class transportation system to the State. It will see the construction of new bus terminals, introduction of 5,000 new buses, and construction of 100 modern Bus Shelters across the State. Already completed Tafawa Balewa Bus Terminus and Ikeja Bus Terminus; Acquired 434 new buses for Ikorodu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor; and commenced work on Oshodi-Abule Egba BRT corridor along the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway (13.5 kilometers; 14 bus stations; 14 pedestrian bridges).

11. Launched the Lagos To The World (#L2W) global campaign, to better market and communicate investment opportunities in the State. As part of the launch of L2W, the Ambode Administration has also unveiled a deal book detailing investment opportunities in key sectors including health, transportation, oil and gas, among others.

15. Upgraded 9,174 square meter Alfred Rewane Garden, Ikoyi and opened it for use by members of the public within and around the Ikoyi axis.

16. Established N 25 Billion Lagos State Employment Trust Fund. The Fund has provided loans worth more than 5 Billion Naira to more than 8,000 persons since inception, and helped create more than 11,000 jobs.

17. Commenced development of N49 billion Public Private Partnership Medical Park in Ikoyi, to be located at the old Nursing School along Awolowo Road, Ikoyi. (Lagos State contributing land; private investors putting up the funding).

18. Redesign of Lekki-Epe Expressway to improve journey times and reduce gridlock by replacing roundabouts with traffic lights

19. Launched Ready-Set-Work, an entrepreneurial and employability training programme aimed at ensuring that every student who graduates from any tertiary institution in Lagos has knowledge, skills, and attitude required to gain employment upon graduation. More than 2,500 final year students trained since 2016.

20. Launched Lagos State Traffic Information System (LATIS), a world-class traffic information and management system comprising hundreds of cameras, road sensors and electronic displays specially designed to collect and deliver real time information to city commuters, and thus help regulate traffic.

21. Launched Code Lagos, an initiative aimed at teaching 1 million Lagos residents to code by 2020. Currently, Code Lagos has trained over 31,000 Lagosians to code while 364 Coding Centres have also been set up in 352 primary and secondary schools as well 12 Out-of-School Centres. http://codelagos.org/

22. Annual hosting of Lagos City Marathon, since 2016. The Marathon has placed Lagos on the global athletics map.

23. Received Presidential approval for handover of National Stadium to Lagos State, to redevelop and transform it into a world-class facility; Rehabilitated Agege Township Stadium to meet Confederation of African Football (CAF) standards; and Mobolaji Johnson Sports Complex, Rowe Park, Yaba

24. Upgraded 14 flagship Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs); Provided 20 Mobile Care Unit ambulances and 26 Transport Ambulances across the State; Approved the establishment of three new Maternal/ Child Health Care Centres to expand the scope and reach of public health service delivery.

25. Constructed Flyover bridges for Ajah and Abule-Egba areas, and Multiple Lay-by to ease traffic congestion along the Third Mainland-Iyana-Oworo-Toll Gate Road.

26. Established Special Task Force, ‘Operation Restore Sanity On Lagos Roads,’ to clear Apapa-Oshodi Expressway of Trucks, Tankers and Trailers. Between July 20 and 22, 2018, the Task Force successfully cleared more than 2,000 Trucks from section of road between Toyota Bus Stop and Mile 2.

27. Rebranded and expanded the Lagos Countdown, into the One Lagos Fiesta, to boost tourism and entertainment. The fiesta now holds simultaneously at five locations across the state: Ikorodu, Epe, Badagry, Lagos Island and Ikeja

28. Established three new Fire Stations at Bolade-Oshodi, Ejigbo and Abesan, and upgraded facilities at the existing Fire Stations in Alausa, Ikeja, Isolo, Agege, Ilupeju, Badagry-Suru, Ikotun and Agege. Rehabilitated 225 old fire hydrants in Lagos metropolis, and installed 50 new ones connected to the mini/micro water works across the State. Also employed 250 new personnel into the Lagos State Fire Service, and purchased new fire-fighting equipment such as complete sets of Master Breathing Apparatus, Tripod Stand Rescue Equipment, Dragon Max Floodlights, Duraline Hoses, and Power Stream PPU Blower.

30. Established Relief Resettlement Camps in 34.Launched, in partnership with the private sector, the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI), to improve waste management and processing in the State, by, among other interventions, constructing Transfer Loading Stations, Maintenance Depots, and Engineered Sanitary Landfills.

31. Established Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment to promote and coordinate investments in Lagos State, and the Small Claims Court to fast-track justice delivery in commercial disputes involving claims not exceeding N5 million. The entire period of proceedings from filing to judgment will not exceed 60 days.

32. Developed the Strategic Plan for Accelerated Agricultural Growth (SPAAG), and set aside 50,000 acres of land for agriculture in the State. The land will be allocated to farmers and investors for production of tomato, rice, fish, etc.

33. Collaborated with Kebbi State to produce LAKE (Lagos-Kebbi) Rice; and with Kano State to organize the first Lagos-Kano Economic Summit.

34. Launched, in partnership with the private sector, the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI), to improve waste management and processing in the State, by, among other interventions, constructing Transfer Loading Stations, Maintenance Depots, and Engineered Sanitary Landfills.

35. Signed into law the landmark Lagos State Electric Power Sector Reform Law, to guarantee 24-hour power supply in line with Governor Ambode’s vision to attain a 24-hour economy. Also signed into law an Amended Land Use Charge Law.

These and many more are some of the recorded achievements of Ambode in the last three years.

From the assessment of these verifiable projects of the Epe born Governor in Lagos state with many more projects still ongoing in the last three year, the question of him deserving a second term in office coomes to mind?

Head of States and governments in the western and central African states have expressed concerns over the upsurge in the spread of violent conflicts between herders and farmers due to and particularly the adverse effects of climate change.

In a communiqué issued at the end of the joint summit of Economic Community of west African States ECOWAS, and the Economic Community of Central African States ECCAS in Lome,the Togolese Capital, referred to as the Lome Declaration, the heads of states renewed their commitment to cooperate in conflict prevention, promotion of peace and stability in the two regions.

They considered the overall security situations in west and central Africa noting the risks created by the increase number of security challenges, particularly terrorism, human, drugs and arms trafficking, money laundering and cybercrime.

speaking at the opening ceremony, The Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe said the Geographical proximity of western and central Africa has created leakages for security and business.

in his words ” The borders we share makes us vulnerable to external influences, it is imperative that we find a common approach to protecting our people from the dangers of these influences by writing a new page to work together for better living for our people”

” The cross border nature of the security threats we face should not hinder our trade relations and other beneficial interventions”

The special representative of the United Nations Secretary General and Head of the UN office for West Africa Muhammed Ibn Chambers stated that Africa must work hard to tackle the root causes of insecurity and terrorism.

He used the medium to call for the doubling of efforts to save the lake chad region from drought in order to reduce the incessant farmers herders crises across west Africa.

he added that with the signing of the memoranda of understanding between ECOWAS and ECCAS, the region has what it takes to forge ahead in the areas of Security of lives and properties.

The Communiqué also captures instructions from heads of governments to their relevant ministers to consider issues relating to Migration and climate change in their common space.

the 21 points communiqué captures the aim of the joint summit which is to create conditions for sustainable peace and secured environment in common area of the two regions.

In response the incessant killings in Zamfara State and other Northern states, The Federal Government has assembled 1000-strong military force, comprising the army, air force, police and the civil defence to launch fierce attacks on the bandits terrorising the villages and towns of Zamfara State.

Following directives by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has begun the deployment of fighter aircraft to Katsina, the airport with the closest proximity to Zamfara State to make for immediate and effective response to the menace of the bandits.

in a statement by the senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity Mallam Garbage Shehu, This had not been possible in the past because there was no fuel depot facility in Katsina, but NAF has devised a way around the problem.

The President has also authorised the engagement by NAF, of advanced satellite surveillance technology to help in accurate detection of movement and locations of the bandits.

the statement Emphasised that The government had to go to this extent because of the limitations of conventional surveillance, as the use of satellite technology could make the task of NAF less problematic.

Following directives from the President, at the weekend, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Sadiq Abubakar, was in Gusau where he met the Deputy Governor of the State.

The Chief of Air Staff reiterated the President’s pledge that he would never abandon victims of attacks to their fate, reaffirming that security remains one of the cardinal pillars of his campaign promises and no leader would be happy to see his own citizens killed by criminal groups across the country.

It will be recalled that since his election, the President has kept faith with his promises to re-equip and motivate the country’s military and other security services.

The army and other security services are now better equipped and motivated to face the challenges of their responsibilities.

The Presidency, therefore, appeals to all Nigerians to unite and speak with one voice on security issues and urges politicians to stop exploiting national security challenges.

President Muhammadu Buhari has assured Nigerians in Diaspora that their efforts towards the development of the country is not in vain as anything done for the good of the country will be ultimately rewarded, and redound to the good of those behind it.

Receiving three groups made of Nigerians in the diaspora, and some professionals hitherto based abroad, but who have returned home in recent times, at State House, Abuja, president Buhari
said “You have been working quietly, supporting the government physically and materially, and you are doing it for your own country. Head or tail, you won’t lose. Please continue to do your best for the country.”

Speaking on behalf of Diaspora Alliance Group, Mr Ade Omole, said the organization was a think-tank in the United Kingdom, which formulates policies to help Nigeria.
They currently have recommendations to help the country in the areas of agriculture, youth empowerment, community development, and education. in his words, “We also educate people in the diaspora on the good work the Buhari administration is doing for Nigeria. You are rebuilding the country. We supported you in 2015, and we will also support you in 2019,” Omole said.

on her part, Dr Badewa Adejugbe-Williams, speaking on behalf of returnee professionals from the diaspora, said they were excited and willing to contribute to national development.
“Our main goal now is investing in Nigeria. We are planning a Nigeria-Diaspora Summit on Investment soon. We are quite pleased with infrastructural development round the country. We want to attract people in diaspora to bring their money, and invest here,” she said.

Also Speaking on behalf of Young people in Diaspora Dr Salihu-Dasuki, lauded President Buhari for signing the Not-Too-Young-To-Run bill into law, assuring that young people would soon begin to utilize the legislation.

On his part, Dr Charles Cudjoe, unfolded how all Nigerians can have access to health care through minimal deductions from the credit on their cell phones, which would be deposited in a health bank in their favour. Such savings would then be accessed whenever they needed medical attention.

President Buhari said the health initiative was very interesting, adding that “policies on health and education for the people are also dear to us.”

ADDRESS BY MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA IN COMMEMORATION OF

THE 2018 DEMOCRACY DAY CELEBRATION,

TUESDAY, 29TH MAY, 2018

My Dear Nigerians!

Today marks the 19th year of our nascent democracy and the 3rd Anniversary of this administration. I am thankful to Almighty God for bringing us thus far. This administration came at a time that Nigerians needed Change, the Change we promised and the Change we continue to deliver. We have faced a lot of challenges on this journey and Nigerians have stood by us in achieving the three cardinal points of this administration namely; Security, Corruption and the Economy.

2. The commemoration of this year’s Democracy Day is a celebration of freedom, a salute to the resilience and determination of Nigerians and a recommitment by Government to keep its promise to lead Nigeria into a new era of justice and prosperity.

3. Public safety and security remains the primary duty of this Government. Before this Administration came into being 3 years ago, Boko Haram held large areas of land spanning several Local Governments in the North East.

4. Today, the capacity of the insurgents has been degraded leading to the re-establishment of authority of government and the release of captives including, happily, 106 Chibok and 104 Dapchi girls, and over 16,000 other persons held by the Boko Haram.

5. In order to minimize the impact of the insurgency on Internally Displaced Persons, Government has established secure IDP Camps and has improved the mechanism for the distribution of basic aid, foods and essential commodities using various strategies in collaboration with local and international Organizations.

6. Efforts are in process for resettlement of IDPs in their home communities by providing schools, hospitals, clinics, water and sanitation to facilitate a quick return to economic activities. Government is similarly implementing de-radicalization and rehabilitation programmes to facilitate sustainable peace and development.

7. The unfortunate incidences of kidnappings, herdsmen and farmers clashes in several communities which have led to high number of fatalities and loss of properties across the country is being addressed and the identified culprits and their sponsors shall be made to face the full wrath of the law. All the three tiers of Government are presently engaged with communities and religious organizations to restore peaceful co-existence among Nigerians.

8. I want to commend members of the Multinational Joint Task Force drawn from Niger, Benin, Chad, Cameroon and our own country in collaboration with the International Community who are assisting in the fight against insurgency in the North East. I also commend the gallantry of members of our Armed Forces and other security agencies that have continued to provide security for lives and properties across the country. State and Local traditional authorities are helping with much needed intelligence in this fight against insurgency.

9. This administration is pained over the grievous loss of lives and properties occasioned by the carnage of insurgency and other forms of criminality in the country. I wish to assure Nigerians that we will not rest until all criminal elements and their sponsors are brought to justice. Government is boosting the capacity of our security agencies through recruitment of more personnel, training and procurement of modern equipment, enhancement of intelligence gathering as well as boosting their morale in the face of daunting challenges.

10. The Niger Delta Region has enjoyed relative peace through social inclusiveness and cooperation of the Elders and the good people of the region. Government is committed to implementing the comprehensive peace, security and development plan for the region. The environmental clean-up of the region which commenced with the launch in Bodo, Ogoni in June, 2016 is progressing satisfactorily. Furthermore farming assets are being revived and investors in cocoa and palm oil plantations are showing serious interest.

11. The second primary object of this Administration is to fight corruption headlong. Like I have always said, if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will destroy the country. Three years into this Administration, Nigerians and the international community have begun to applaud our policies and determination to fight corruption. We are more than ever before determined to win this war, however hard the road is. I therefore appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to continue to support us in this fight.

12. Various policy measures already put in place to stem the tide of corrupt practices are yielding remarkable results. Some of these key reform policies include:

a. The Treasury Single Account (TSA) has realized Billions of Naira being saved from maintenance fee payable to banks. N200 Billion has also been saved from elimination of ghost workers in public service.

b. The Whistle-Blowing Policy has helped to recover over N500 Billion;

c. The Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit set up with a mandate to validate controls, assess risks, prune personnel costs, ensure compliance with Public Financial Management reforms has helped to identify and remove over 52,000 ghost workers from the Federal Government MDAs Payroll;

d. The Voluntary Asset and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) aimed at expanding tax education and awareness has offered the opportunity for tax defaulters to regularise their status in order to enjoy the amnesty of forgiveness on overdue interest, penalties and the assurance of non-prosecution or subject to tax investigations.

e. The Sovereign Wealth Fund project portfolio has been expanded with an injection of US$650 million so as to strengthen its investment in local infrastructure, power, health, re-construction of Abuja-Kano road, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, East West Road (Section V) and the Mambilla Hydro-electric Power project as well as the construction of the 2nd Niger Bridge.

13. The fight against corruption through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has resulted in recoveries of Billions of Naira, as well as forfeiture of various forms of assets. This alongside other efforts has improved Nigeria’s international image and regional cooperation.

14. We have retained the services of one of the world’s leading assets tracing firms to investigate and trace assets globally. This is in addition to the exploitation of provisions of existing Treaties, Conventions as well as Bilateral Agreements with Multilateral bodies and Nations. Nigeria has also signed Mutual Legal Assistance Agreements to ensure that there is no hiding place for fugitives.

15. This Administration has therefore focused on revamping the ailing economy it inherited in 2015. In 2016, Government executed an expansionary budget and developed the Strategic Implementation Plan. For the first time, 30% of the budget was earmarked for capital expenditure which represents an upward review when compared with the 2015 budget. The SIP was followed by the development of a comprehensive medium term plan – the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan 2017 – 2020.

16. The broad strategic objectives of the ERGP were to; Restore and sustain economic growth; Build a globally competitive economy; and Invest in our people. The implementation of the ERGP has started yielding results. The National Bureau of Statistics reports that the economy grew by 1.95% in 1st quarter 2018, which is a good performance when viewed against -0.91 in 1st quarter 2017 and -0.67% in 1st quarter 2016 respectively.

17. Our foreign reserve has improved significantly to 47.5 billion USD as of May, 2018 as against 29.6 billion USD in 2015. The inflationary rate has consistently declined every month since January, 2017.

18. Recently, Government conducted Focus Labs in three key sectors of the Economy namely, Agriculture & Transport, Manufacturing and Processing as well as Power and Gas. These have yielded significant prospects for investments and Job creation to the tune of US$ 22.5 billion with a potential for creating more than 500,000 jobs by 2020. These investment generation initiatives are expected to increase capital inflows in the form of foreign direct investment. There is a high prospect that the cumulative investments from this first phase of the Labs will hit US$39.2 billion by 2025.

19. Under agriculture, Nigeria continues to pursue a strategic food security programme built around self-sufficiency and minimization of import dependency. As a result, rice importation from other countries has been cut down by 90% which has a direct impact on foreign reserves.

20. The Social Investment Programmes (SIP) has been created as a means to graduating our citizens from poverty through capacity building, investment and direct support. The major strategic objective is to restore livelihood, economic opportunities and sustenance for the poor across the country. The SIP programmes and projects include:

a. Home Grown School Feeding Programme – About 8.2 million pupils are currently being fed from 24 States of the Federation with over 75,000 Catering Staff engaged under the programme.

b. The Conditional Cash Transfer has so far recorded over 297,000 caregivers and being trained by 2,495 Community Facilitators in 21 states. Less privileged Nigerians are now being paid N5,000 monthly stipend in 9 pilot States of Bauchi, Borno, Cross River, Ekiti, Kwara, Kogi, Niger, Osun and Oyo. Eventually the scheme will cover all the 36 states of the federation including the FCT.

c. Under the Government Enterprise Empowerment Programme – About 264,269 loans had been disbursed to 4,822 societies in the 36 States and FCT, while another 370,635 are awaiting release of funds.

d. N-Power Job creation Scheme – is targeted at providing jobs for unemployed young graduates and has so far recruited 200,000 youths while the next batch of 300,000 have been selected, verified and would soon be deployed across the 36 States and the FCT. Furthermore, 20,000 non-graduate volunteers have also been selected to kick off the N-Build programme in collaboration with the National Automotive Design and Development Council and the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria.

21. In the area of power generation, Nigerians from all parts of the country continue to report better power supply and less use of generators. This underscores the effectiveness of the methodical plan to deliver incremental and uninterrupted power supply to our homes, markets, offices and factories.

22. The country achieved 5, 222.3 MW representing the highest peak of power generated onto the national grid and delivered to customers in December, 2017. With new facilities, repairs and rehabilitations by Government and private investors, generation capability now exceeds 7,500 MW.

23. This Administration is committed to lawful interventions to ensure the operators of the distribution business live up to expectations especially in the areas of distribution capacity, service delivery, collection efficiency, and metering to eliminate contentious estimated billing.

24. The Transportation Sector continues to undergo a series of reforms in order to sustain the international best practices and ensure safety and security. The nation’s major airports have witnessed reconstruction of runways, installation of navigational equipment and new international terminals due for commissioning in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Enugu. Bilateral Air Services Agreements between Nigeria and the Governments of other countries will significantly open up new flight routes.

25. As a result of strict regulatory and compliance policies, Nigeria retained her Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Category 1 status, after a routine international audit. Recently, a new Maintenance Repair and Overhaul facility with capacity for aircraft C-checks and other comprehensive levels of maintenance was established in Lagos. This would save the country an estimated $90m annually.

26. Giant strides have been recorded over the past three years to improve road transport infrastructure in all geopolitical zones of the country.

27. The Railway Sector has also received tremendous attention as this Administration is committed to the goal of linking all State capitals in the Federation by rail network to ease the movement of goods and passengers.

28. The Education Sector especially at tertiary level has continued to witness expansion in order to improve access to higher education by millions of youths in Nigeria. Over the last three years, Government has approved the establishment of 1 new Federal Polytechnic, granted licenses for the establishment of 4 State and 14 private-owned Universities as well as 12 private Polytechnics.

29. Government has also continued to support the implementation of various initiatives aimed at improving the quality of Basic Education delivery. Thus, it has ensured proper funding at the Basic Education level with the disbursement of N42.2 billion UBE Matching Grant to 26 States and the FCT, N851.5 million Special Education Grant disbursed to 23 States and private providers of Special Education and N2.2 billion Teachers Professional Development Fund to 33 States and the FCT.

30. The Federal Government has continued to support fiscal sustainability at the sub-national governments through the implementation of the Budget Support Facility which was accompanied by the 22- point Fiscal Sustainability Plan. Thus, bailouts funds were made available to States to ease their fiscal challenges and other obligations including payment of salaries.

31. In addition, a total of 73 Ecological Fund projects for the control of gully erosion in different communities across all geopolitical zones have been completed in the last three years and are undergoing commissioning while 53 other projects are ongoing. The execution of these projects has generated 357 skilled jobs and 1,350 unskilled jobs during this period.

32. It is pertinent to also make mention of the immeasurable contributions of the Nigerian woman to national development and advancement of democracy, over the last three years. The government and people appreciate you all as mothers of our great country.

33. My dear country men and women, as we all celebrate our democratic experience, let us resolve to avoid hatred and intolerance; we can only achieve our objectives in an atmosphere of harmony and peaceful co-existence.

34. Finally, the up-coming months will usher us into another season of general elections. Let me use this opportunity to urge us all to conduct ourselves, our wards and our constituencies with the utmost sense of fairness, justice and peaceful co-existence such that we will have not only hitch free elections but also a credible and violence free process.

35. In few days to come, I will be joined by many promising young Nigerians to sign into law the “Not Too Young to Run” Bill

President Muhammadu Buhari has returned to Abuja, after attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in the United Kingdom.

The president who departed Nigeria for UK on the 9th of April, 2018 shortly after he made a formal declaration that he would contest next year’s Presidential election touched down at the presidential wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja at about 7:15 pm.

Prior to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which held between 18th to 20th April, the President had a private meeting with the British Prime Minister, Theresa May.

While in the UK, several controversies also trailed his visit as Buhari had claimed he was not bothered about the forth coming general elections, rather he was more worried about the security situation in the country.

Buhari was received on arrival at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport by his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, Chairman,All Progressive Congress(APC) Governors Forum and Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, some of the service chiefs in the military, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris among others.

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